Former Regina tent encampment residents stay at Balgonie motel temporarily

Following the dismantling of the tent encampment at Regina City Hall, some residents were sent to stay in a Balgonie motel over the weekend.

In a statement, the Ministry of Social Services confirmed hotel rooms in Regina and Balgonie “were secured to provide immediate safe shelter to individuals who accept it.”

“The ministry worked with other human service ministries, agencies, and community-based organizations to mobilize all available resources to support the community, to connect people to the emergent and ongoing services they need, including food, transportation and shelter,” the statement read.

Community volunteer Mandla Mthembu, who helped at the tent encampment, knew of at least eight people who temporarily stayed at the motel in Balgonie over the weekend.

He said it created even more of a disconnect for those who are in need of a sense of community.

“If you ask the people who are actually forced to be in that situation, it just doesn’t work for their lifestyle, or anyone’s life, to just be upended like that and not know whether you’re going to be in the city you call your home by Monday and how that’s going to happen,” Mthembu said.

He said volunteers were in contact with those staying in Balgonie to ensure they had a safe ride back to the city once they checked out of the motel at noon on Monday.

According to the ministry, social services is covering all transportation costs as clients attend the Regina offices to discuss their needs and longer-term shelter options.

“They need the government to get to the table and be a partner in finding lasting solutions. Putting people up temporarily in hotels is not a solution,” said NDP leader Carla Beck.

Despite some staying in hotels and a few individuals connecting with shelters after the camp was dismantled, Mthembu said most of the former camp residents are back living on the streets.

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Regina Fire ordered the decommissioning of the camp last Thursday. It was officially taken down on Friday.

Mthembu is one of several camp volunteers now trying to locate and reconnect with former residents who have dispersed across the city.

He said helping them is even more challenging now that they don’t have a central location to communicate with people.

“It’s really heartbreaking stuff. People I think are feeling a little more endangered and vulnerable than they were the last 40 days,” Mthembu said.

As a result, Mthembu and other volunteers are patrolling the Heritage, North Central and Downtown neighbourhoods to offer support, guidance and meals to those experiencing homelessness.

For the time being, Mthembu said the group will continue trying to offer some of the same supports the camp did, while rebuilding the sense of community that was lost when the tents came down.

“You can rip down our tents, you can throw people’s belongings in the trash but we’re still here and the people that care, care,” he said.

“We’re just hoping that the more people that see what’s going on here have a heart and have the compassion for the people that are experiencing this and will come out and support them the way that these people deserve.”

City Hall reopened to the public on Monday after closing its doors during the dismantling of the camp.

The fence around the courtyard will stay in place until property repairs are complete, according to officials.

However, it is unclear how long the repairs could take.